For those who drive the final few kilometres up to Bivignano , it quickly becomes clear why people never forget this place. The small cluster of old houses sits in quiet seclusion among the hills of Tuscany, more than six kilometres from the nearest village. Up here there are no shopping streets, no hotel complexes and no rapid mass tourism. Instead, there are wild boar, shooting stars, fireflies, horse pastures and a stillness that has long since become rare in much of Europe.
It was amid this landscape that Patricia and Stephan Wanner began their new life 18 years ago. From a farmhouse in need of renovation near farmhouse near Arezzo , the Agriturismo "Casa Bivignano" gradually took shape over the years. A place that has become far more than simply accommodation in Tuscany for many of its guests. "You arrive as a guest and leave as a friend," says Patricia Wanner. And indeed, that appears to be precisely the philosophy that continues to define this place.
A love of Italy that began in childhood
The fact that Patricia Wanner would one day settle permanently in Italy had its roots long before the actual move. As a child, she had already spent holidays with her family in Cesena on the Adriatic coast. Her father, she recalls, was a great lover of Italy . Later came Florence , and with it, it seems, the heart's final decision. "When I was in Florence for the first time at 16, I was completely smitten," she recalls today.
Even an old Florentine legend played its part. The famous "Fontana del Porcellino", a bronze wild boar in the heart of the city, is said to bring good luck and guarantee a return to Tuscany. "Why not," says Patricia Wanner with a smile.
The historic natural stone house of Casa Bivignano sits in secluded surroundings among the hills of Tuscany, accommodating a maximum of ten guests.
At the age of 30, she spent a year working at an agriturismo near Florence, looking after international guests and horses. Back in Switzerland, she met her future husband Stephan, and together they took the leap. "To be honest, we had absolutely no savings," she says candidly. A bank granted a mortgage, and a relative helped with a loan for the deposit. "And so the story begins..."
Snow, icy rooms and the start of an adventure
The first months in Italy, however, bore little resemblance to any romantic emigrant fantasy. When the couple took over their farmhouse, neither comfort nor security awaited them. "If we had known from the outset what lay ahead, I probably wouldn't have dared to take that step," says Patricia Wanner, looking back today.
Even the move itself became quite an adventure. Snow fell as far south as Naples, the lorry had to be replaced en route, and temperatures inside the house hovered around freezing. There was initially no wood for heating. "Welcome to Italy," she says today, with a certain wry irony.
While Stephan was getting the living quarters in order, Patricia arrived in Bivignano in early March together with friends and their two horses, Gazelle and Diego. By the end of March, the first guests had already arrived, experiencing sunshine and mild temperatures within a matter of hours, followed suddenly by snowfall. The agriturismo sits at around 730 metres above sea level, and the weather up here can change rapidly. Despite all the difficulties, Patricia Wanner sums it up simply: "I am glad we dared to do it!"
Everything was reinvested
What followed were years of hard work. Practically every euro earned flowed back into the house, the animals and the infrastructure. A pool was built, walls were restored, the roof was repaired, further rooms were added, and kitchens and floors were modernised. To that came a solar installation, stabling, a tractor, an excavator and numerous fenced grazing areas.
Wild boars are an almost everyday sight in the remote hills surrounding Bivignano, and encounters with nature are anything but rare here.
The animals in particular became the centrepiece of life in Bivignano. What had started as two horses grew over the years into a herd of 18, mainly Criollos from Uruguay and Argentina. Three mules, cats and dogs were added, including animals from difficult backgrounds. "We also frequently rescue animals," says Patricia Wanner. Dogs from shelters, mistreated horses or animals that would otherwise have had little chance.
Time for themselves, by contrast, was scarce. For many years both of them also worked in Switzerland during the winter months, when fewer guests came, yet the animals still needed to be cared for. It was only after a long time that they allowed themselves their first shared holiday. "That was a big mistake," says Patricia Wanner today, reflecting on the years of relentless work without breaks.
Guests who greet every tree
Many visitors have been coming to Bivignano since its earliest years. Some once came as children and now travel there with their own families. Others pitch in, roll up their sleeves and have long since become part of an extended circle of friends. "There are guests who greet every single tree as they drive up," says Patricia Wanner. It was especially during the Covid years that this close bondbecame apparent. When many small businesses across Italy were struggling to survive, guests helped out, offered their support and got stuck in.
Perhaps it is precisely this family atmosphere that draws so many people. In the evenings, guests gather together for an aperitivo, share plates of pasta or Tuscan dishes, and gaze out over the tranquil hills of the region. Instead of traffic noise, one hears crickets, the wind and sometimes horses on the pastures. Encounters with wild boarWolf tracks are regularly discovered, as are porcupine quills along the paths.
The pool at Casa Bivignano sits amid the tranquil hills of Tuscany, far from mass tourism and surrounded by nature.
The darker side of the Italian dream
Yet the story of Bivignano is not purely a romantic tale of moving to Italy. Patricia Wanner speaks candidly about the more difficult aspects of life in Italy, particularly regarding bureaucratic hurdles and years of legal disputes. Shortly after the purchase, the authorities demanded unexpectedly high back payments relating to an old barn.
Later, the agriturismo was suddenly reclassified as a hotel operation on account of a small canopy, with serious tax consequences. "I was close to throwing it all in," she reflects. Several lawyers, court proceedings and substantial tax demands cost the couple enormous sums and considerable energy. Today, both hope to settle the remaining outstanding liabilities in full before long. Despite everything, they never gave up.
Yoga, riding weeks and walks through Tuscany
Over time, the offering at Bivignano has continued to evolve. Alongside traditional holiday stays, Patricia Wanner organises yoga riding weeks, rides out and guided walks through Tuscany and Umbria. Some tours even extend as far as Rimini. Others follow in the footsteps of Francis of Assisi or Michelangelo through national parks, small villages and remote landscapes.
"What could be more beautiful than walking through a breathtaking landscape and rounding off the evening with a culinary highlight?" says Patricia Wanner. This year, nine guided walks are planned. Many guests are not looking for luxury or organised entertainment, but rather for nature, tranquillity and genuine encounters.
One of the guest rooms at Casa Bivignano, featuring exposed wooden beams, a natural stone wall, and the deliberately rustic character of the historic farmhouse.
A place that teaches humility
Perhaps one sentence from Patricia Wanner best captures what Bivignano is really about: "Bivignano teaches us humility, time and again." Life up there is closely bound to nature. When the weather turns, water becomes scarce or a storm sweeps across the hills, one quickly becomes aware of "how small one actually is." And perhaps that is precisely why people return again and again. Not because of perfection, but because of a feeling for life that has been lost in so many places.
Or, as Patricia Wanner herself puts it: "One could write whole books about it…"
Two flats and two guest rooms
Today, Casa Bivignano comprises two flats and two guest rooms for a maximum of ten guests. In recent years, the old farmhouse and grounds have been gradually extended and modernised, including new kitchens and flooring, a large pergola, a pool, a modern heating system, a solar installation, as well as additional stabling and fenced pasture areas for the animals.
